


Tender Love, Baby

by powerofexoclipse



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Car Accidents, M/M, One Shot, Short One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-27
Updated: 2018-05-27
Packaged: 2019-05-14 14:00:04
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,414
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14770937
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/powerofexoclipse/pseuds/powerofexoclipse
Summary: [Car accident trigger warning]Chanyeol was behind the wheel when the accident happened and he can't forgive himself.





	Tender Love, Baby

**Author's Note:**

> Something I wrote months ago at 3am! Inspired by a photo someone send me of Chanyeol and Baekhyun in a car together while Tender Love was playing on the radio. Idk what this is lol

"B-Baekhyun?" Chanyeol stuttered while his ears were still ringing from the crash.    


"Baekkie..." He desperately called before he begged, "Say something, Baekkie, please..."  Chanyeol waited for a while before trying it again, giving the smaller a chance to reply, to give him any sign of that he's still there. That he is still okay.   


Silence.   


"Baek, please..." Chanyeol couldn't move. He was squished between his seat and the airbag of his car.    


He felt anger boiling inside of him. Anger for the airbag pushing against his lungs and his face, limiting his movements. Anger for Baekhyun who was not answering his attempts to make contact. Anger for the whole situation he found himself in just now and angry at himself, because he was the one who caused it. He was behind the wheel.   


There's a lot of noise going on outside. People yelling at other people to get help. People yelling for his attention, but he doesn't care to listen. All his large ears were focussed on was a reply from the older boy, which frankly doesn't come.   


Baekhyun stood no chance, Chanyeol realised. Baekhyun had pulled his seatbelt more loose so he could lean against Chanyeol's shoulder in a more comfortable position. His small, fragile body exposed to any accident, with his trust fully put into Chanyeol's driving skills. They were laughing and talking about the winter comeback they'd soon have and Baekhyun was telling him how excited he was to be hearing feedback from their fans on the songs they've written. He was so happy that he was soon going to be able to share his hard work with the people who supported him and made it possible for him to live this kind of life.   


Chanyeol loved the way Baekhyun could talk so passionately about something. How his smile would het broader and show both his upper and bottom teeth. His eyes wouldn't be focussed on Chanyeol and he didn't mind, because baekhyun was lost far away in his mind, recalling the memories that made him so passionate about the topic in the first place. His eyes would sparkle so bright. He'd look so happy. If he could only turn his head now to find Baekhyun smiling like that again.   


The yelling voices outside grew louder and he could hear sirens far away in the distance. Chanyeol still did not care. He closed his eyes and tried to picture that Baekhyun to give him comfort while he waited out what was going to happen.    


The sirens were right next to their car now, but in Chanyeol’s mind they still sounded so distant. He felt the airbag moving and slowly deflating. Voices yelling, clapping of hands and snapping of their fingers right next to his ears. He wanted to open his eyes and check on Baekhyun now that his body was free from the wreck, but he wasn't able to do it. He had no energy left and felt his mind slowly moving into unconsciousness while two pair of strong arms dragged him out of the car.

* * *

 

Days later, he woke up. He was in a hospital bed, wired onto many beeping machines and no one in sight. His first instinct was to pull the needles out, rip the stickers off and get up to find someone who works here so he can ask what the hell is going on, but that's when he remembered exactly what was happening. Specifically, he remembered Baekhyun.   


He grabbed the remote from the bedside table and turned the tv hanging above his bed on. He switched between the news channels, until he found what he was looking for.   
A video taken from a drone, showing a total loss car, smoke coming out and lots of people panicking around it. On the right side of the screen, two photos were shown. On the top his own passport photo and on the bottom Baekhyun's. Both smiling back at him. The news anchor was telling him that both of them had not woken up yet, but that Chanyeol, he, was stable while Baekhyun was still in a critical condition.   


Chanyeol felt a strong wave of sadness wash over him. He felt guilty and afraid for Baekhyun's life. He couldn't help it but to cry. Nurses heard him apparently as they came rushing to his room, calling for a doctor to come look at him. Chanyeol just kept staring hopelessly at the screen, as if it would make any difference, while the doctors asked him many questions and started making changes to the machines to fit his new, awake, condition. Quickly after the screen changed to the news anchor, telling him that they just got new information in. Chanyeol had woken up. That was all the information she had to tell, but still nothing from Baekhyun. 

* * *

More days passed and Baekhyun's condition didn't change. The longer people stay in a coma, the less chance there is for them to wake up ever again. Chanyeol decided to spend all his days, once he was ready to leave the hospital, to update people on Baekhyun's current condition and hopefully help his recovery in the progress.

He was interviewed by the police about the car accident many times, and it was tiring. This constant repeat of crying and asking if Baekhyun had woken up yet to people bothering him constantly with questions, only because those news outlets wanted to put out the juiciest headline, was tiring.

Maybe they were even hoping it was all Chanyeol's fault so they could blame him, but no one blamed Chanyeol for Baekhyun's condition more than he himself. He was exhausted from guilt, sadness, stress and anger.

He decided he'd make one last statement about the situation for their fans who mean so much to them before retreating back to his house so he could focus on his own mind and care for himself before he could accidently overwork himself. 

* * *

He did it on live tv. 

He went to the news station of choice to tell his story. 

He told them that Baekhyun is still not doing better. He told them this was his last time speaking out about it before going under the radar so he could rest. He saw himself in the monitor behind the cameras. His usually plump cheeks were sunken in, he had large dark circles under his eyes and his lips were chapped and pale. He stared at himself for a while and sighed, before starting to ramble. 

He didn't prepair the next part he was going to say, but it just came out of him naturally. He told the cameras how Baekhyun and he met and how much they loved being a part of EXO and having EXO-L with them on the entire journey. He brought up a joyful memory they had together and slightly smiled to himself, forgotten to look at the camera instead of at his hands long ago. He started talking about how passionately Baekhyun had talked about EXO-L right before the incident and his smile slowly slipped as his mind naturally continued into showing him his memories from right after the crash and the worry that had washed over him when he could not get any reply from Baekhyun. He forgot the last time he had heard his friend's voice. He quickly shook it off and ended his speech by speaking from his heart.    


"Baekhyun and I... We were so close. I... I have never loved anyone like I have loved Baekhyun. No, I still love him and I don't want to lose him, definitely not like this. I wouldn't know how to continue without his voice or his puppy-like aura that makes me feel like the happiest person in the entire world...    
Baekhyun... I love you. Please wake up." 

The whole studio was silent and stared with open mouths at Chanyeol. He didn't look at them; he walked out of the studio before anyone could stop him. The cameras kept on rolling and they didn't know what to do. They obviously couldn't cut it out, because it was live television.    


However, they weren't the only ones shocked at these words, Chanyeol himself was too. He never thought he would confess, and especially not on live television while Baekhyun wasn't even there to hear it. He didn't even know if Baekhyun liked guys or not, he just wanted everyone to know how much he means to him and how much this has affected him as a human with strong feelings of love for someone who was unsure of survival at this point in time. In the back of his mind he was a little afraid at how his fans, friends and family will react, but he was planning on shutting himself off of the world for a while until he felt better, or until Baekhyun's situation was certain, bad or good. He has been hiding his true feelings for years and he knows that this will change everything between him and Baekhyun if he wakes up, but there is a high probability that he won't and he wanted to atleast have said it before Baekhyun passes away, even if he knows he can't hear him.    


Once arrived at his house, he locked the door and threw the key into a plant, followed by him throwing his body on his bed. He fell asleep almost instantly from exhaustion.   


* * *

A week later and Baekhyun still hadn't woken up and Chanyeol still hadn't left his house. His phone had blown up with text messages and missed calls. The only one he bothered to read and reply to was Junmyeon. He read that Junmyeon was worried about him and Chanyeol texted him back that he wants to keep it low for a few days for as long as he needed it and Junmyeon agreed. He understood his decision entirely. This is why Chanyeol trusted Junmyeon with the task to provide him with food. He didn't feel hungry, but if he wanted to recover from the exhaustion he had to eat, so he did. He didn't want to neglect his health while Baekhyun had still a chance of waking up. Junmyeon never said anything about Chanyeol's confession on live television and he was glad for that. He didn't want to talk about it, because he wouldn't know how to answer the questions anyone had for him. He was confused and dazed himself too.    


It kept going like this, with Junmyeon being his only contact with the outside world and because of this it was also Chanyeol answering Junmyeons call when he called to tell him that Baekhyun had woken up. Never before had Chanyeol dressed himself so quickly and ran out the door. He knew that Baekhyun waking up could still mean that it wasn't over yet. They couldn't tell if he would have brain damage if he ever woke up or if he would ever be able to speak or walk again. But the most important thing right now was that he had woken up and Chanyeol had to see for himself no matter how broken he'd feel if he saw that his Baekhyun would never be the same again as he was before. His hair was slightly greasy and sticking out in odd angles, because he had fallen asleep with wet hair two nights before and didn't bother to fix it. 

He ran to the crossroad that Junmyeon had said he'd wait for him with his car and he recognised it immediately once the crossroad was in sight. He got in and together they rushed to the hospital. Chanyeol felt uneasy in the car, due to the trauma the crash had given him, but he was willing to overlook that to get to Baekhyun as quickly as possible.

 

* * *

They arrived at the hospital and Junmyeon told Chanyeol to run ahead of him while he parked the car. The parking lot was littered with news stations and the entrance of the hospital was full of journalists trying to get in, but failing, because of the hospital's security. Chanyeol advanced towards the hordes of cameras and microphones and pushed through to the front.    


"Let me in!" He yelled, "I'm Park Chanyeol, I need to see Baekhyun."    


He didn't have to say who he was, the security recognised him and let him in straight away without question.  Chanyeol remembered the room Baekhyun was in the last time be was here and rushed towards it. 

Once there, he saw Jongin and Kyungsoo were already there and he knew the  rest was probably on their way, too. He hadn't seen them in weeks. He saw how full the room was with doctors and nurses monitoring Baekhyun's condition, Chanyeol assumed they were running tests on his brain. 

Because of his height, he was able to see above all the people in the room and caught a glimpse of Baekhyun. His eyelids were only half opened and they kept falling back down. He looked as if his eyes couldn't focus and he looked very dazed and confused, but most importantly, he looked like Baekhyun and he was alive. A huge grin started to form on Chanyeol’s face and he felt so many positive feelings wash over him. He didn't want to jinx himself, because he knew this could still end bad for them, but he couldn't stop himself. 

A doctor interrupted his train of thought. "I have to request you all to leave while we try to stabilize Mr. Byun's condition. However, I can give you the news that his brain looks normal and shows no sign of damage as of right now."   


Chanyeol had almost pulled the doctor into a tight embrace, but he was able to stop himself just in time, so he could grab the nearest person standing next to him, jongdae, and squeeze him with all his might.    


* * *

He left the hospital that day with the other members who all came there upon hearing the news of Baekhyun waking up. After weeks of not seeing them, Chanyeol had really missed them. Even if they left that hospital without Baekhyun, he was with them in their mind, peacefully as they knew he would turn out fine. They talked chaotically for a while and laughing loudly before splitting up again to go home.    


None of them brought up Chanyeol's confession and he himself had almost forgotten too, until his doorbell rang a week later. He placed his bowl of crisps on the table, paused the tv and got off the couch to answer the door.    


His breath hitched in his throat when he opened it. Baekhyun stood there with his familiar cocky smirk, all alone without wires or help from anyone keeping him alive and stable. He couldn't believe it. He opened his arms and his body flew forwards toward to smaller and pulled him into an embrace so meaningful, as previously he had thought he would never be able to do this again. They stood there for a while, Baekhyun's small arms wrapping around his waist and in complete silence.    


Chanyeol didn't know for how long they had been standing there when he squeezed Baekhyun even tighter, when Baekhyun let out a small yelp in pain, which caused Chanyeol to let go of him at once to look at him with a worried expression, asking if he was okay. Baekhyun nodded in reply and Chanyeol let out the breath he didn't know he was holding.    


He stared at the smaller while his expression softened and the other stared back, before asking him to come inside.   


"Please, come in, you're going to get a cold." He placed his hand on the small of Baekhyun's back to push him inside.    


"Ah, Chanyeol, I'll be fine. Seriously." Baekhyun whined, but it didn't stop him from leading him to the couch and wrapping the blanket that Chanyeol was previously wrapped in while watching a movie around him.    


"Do you need anything?" He asked, "Something to drink?" He fidgeted nervously with his hands.   


"Chanyeol, for god's sake, sit down already." Chanyeol obeyed without taking his eyes off him.    


He sighed. "Shit, Baekhyun, you don't know how glad I am to know you're awake. I can barely believe it myself that you're here right now."    


"Trust me, I can't believe it either."   


"Does it hurt? Your body, anything, I mean."   


"A little, but the doctors said it will be over, a full recovery will take long, however."   


The conversation fell silent and Baekhyun wiggled around in his blanket so he could lean against the giant. It reminded Chanyeol of the way he had rested his head on his shoulder in the car, right before the crash happened. He shook off the thought.    


It was silent for a while, but it was a comfortable silent. They let the realisation of finally being reunited against the odds again.   


At some point, Baekhyun started to giggle and Chanyeol felt him shake against his shoulder.   


"What?" He asked.   


"It's just... Gosh, I never expected you to say anything like that on live television."    


"W-what?" Chanyeol wanted to explain, but he kept stuttering, his face burning hot. He was glad Baekhyun couldn't see him right now.    


"Ahw, do you have a little crush on me, Park Chanyeol?" Baekhyun teased him.   


"No! Not like that! I meant it in a friendly way. As friends, okay?" He rushed to reply.   


Baekhyun weakly pushed his body up to push his face against Chanyeol's neck and nuzzle into it, causing him to only get hotter, even if he thought that wasn't even a possibility.    


"Sure you did. Well, I thought it was cute. I saw you say that long ass speech during a recap on the news channel I watched while I had to recover at the hospital... I thought it'd surprise you by coming over without notifying anyone that I left the hospital first, to tell you how I felt now that I knew how you felt." He pouted his lips to place a painfully slow kiss upon Chanyeol's neck.    


"Well?" Chanyeol let out, "How did you feel?"   


"Hmm~? Oh.." Baekhyun was teasing him by replying slowly while leaving a trace of kissed from his neck to his jaw. "How I felt, hm? I was going to tell you that I felt the same way."    


Chanyeol's heart skipped a beat and he froze completely. He had regretted his words on live tv before, but he definitely didn't right at this moment. Baekhyun noticed all of  Chanyeol's muscles tensing up and moved away from his neck to get a better look at his face.   


"What's wrong?" He barely finished his sentence or Chanyeol's weight shifted towards him, making both of them tumble so that they were lying on the couch, Chanyeol half on top of him and burying his face into his collarbone.    


"Baekhyun, I swear to god..."   


"I love you." Baekhyun let out quickly.   


Upon hearing that Chanyeol climbed up so he could reach the older's face, cupping his cheeks with his large hands and closing the gap between them. Chanyeol had kissed people before, but he had never felt something as amazing as this. He felt a shiver down his spine when Baekhyun wrapped his arms around his torso to bring Chanyeol down on top of him. He was careful not to let his full weight lean onto Baekhyun at first, but when he noticed it was fine he let himself fully melt together to deepen the kiss. He leaned back a little to give both of them room to breathe and to whisper "I love you" many times against the other's lips, before attacking them again.   


"Gosh, Baekhyun..." Chanyeol panted between kisses, "I was so afraid to lose you and it would be all my fault..."   


"Shut up," Baekhyun replied, "It doesn't matter. We're both okay. I don't want you to blame yourself. Please."   


Chanyeol just nodded. He didn't let the other go for the rest of the day and eventually he fell asleep on top of Baekhyun, limbs tangled together. It all felt so unreal, but that wasn't what was important. The important part was that this would change both of their lives forever. They still had to tell the news channels, their fans, their family and of course, the other members, but at least they didn't have to do this all alone, because they had each other. And no matter how this may end, how the world may react, they were happy in eachothers arms.


End file.
